As Knights of the Sovereign and Military Order of Malta and Auxiliaries, who have pledged to defend the Catholic, the Apostolic, the Roman Faith, we express our full support to the firm stand taken by our Grand Master, Fra Matthew Festing, KM, regarding the undue interference of the Holy See in the Order’s internal affairs. We take this initiative in our own name as individual Knights.
"The Grand Magistry of the Sovereign Order of Malta has learnt of the decision made by the Holy See to appoint a group of five persons to shed light on the replacement of the former Grand Chancellor.
“The replacement of the former Grand Chancellor is an act of internal government administration of the Sovereign Order of Malta, and consequently falls solely within its competence.
“The aforementioned appointment is the result of a misunderstanding by the Secretariat of State of the Holy See.
“The Grand Master respectfully clarified the situation in a letter to the Supreme Pontiff, laying out the reasons why the suggestions made by the Secretariat of State were unacceptable.
“He assured the Holy Father of his filial devotion and asked the Pontiff for the Apostolic Blessing, both for him and for the Sovereign Order of Malta, its 13,500 members and its 100,000 staff and volunteers who continue to provide a permanent and efficient hospitaller presence in more than 120 countries in the world according to the centuries-old charism of the Order of Malta."
(Statement from the Malta Magistry in Rome)
I add: Why is it unacceptable? Because The Order of Malta is a Sovereign entity, like any State, and the Holy See has no authority to intervene in its internal administrative affairs, just as the Pope cannot intervene in the administration of Norway, India or the United States.
Since Pope Paschal II granted full autonomy in the 11th century, the Order has always been obedient to the Church as far as faith, morals and ecclesiastical discipline are concerned. But since it is as sovereign as a State, internal administration is not under the control of the Holy See.
Unless, of course, this fake commission is just a decoy to discredit His Eminence Raymond Burke, the Order’s Patron Cardinal, and, by association, the other Cardinals who asked the Holy Father to clarify his ambiguous teaching in Amoris Letitia on marriage and adultery.
See interview: http://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/knights-of-malta-to-pope-respect-our-jurisdiction
Raymond J de Souza, KM - Team Coordinator
ChevalierdeMalta@Outlook.com - www.RaymonddeSouza.com
